Today we’d like to introduce you to Rebecca Callander.
Rebecca, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’m Beks. I started writing music when I was 11 yrs old. My first job was writing a radio jingle for a local hairdressers in a country town called Bundaberg, Australia. I left music for a good decade and returned to writing music whilst selling handbags out of the back of my car along the East coast of Australia. I had not intended to become a songwriter but as I was alone on the road for weeks with a boot full of PVC handbags, I became bored with listening to the radio and CDs in my car so I started to sing my own little jingles. At this later stage in my life, I had no idea how to create music so I sung into my iPhone voice memos using kitchen utensils and pots and plates to make beats at roadside motels I’d stop into of an evening. I sent these voice memos to a producer in Sydney and my journey to making music full time began. I learned the drums guitar had several bands. I fronted an all girl punk rock band called RACKETT, we toured Australia with The Darkness and The Growlers, playing over 360 live shows across the country. After three years as the frontwomen of RACKETT I decided to follow a path I had already walked as a child, back to pop music. I jumped on a flight to Japan and played 14 shows, performing my new EDM pop and learning about pop music in Japan. I came home and launched my solo career as ‘Beks’. And now I’m here, in Australia collaborating with artists all around the world. My second single as Beks, ‘The Thing About Us’ got picked up by Channel 7 and went on to be the soundtrack for a new Home and Away commercial so I’m meeting new fans and learning more about the business of writing music. I’ve made a mixtape heavily focused on collaboration which features a new producer and feature artist on each track. Having had a band, I love to collaborate and create with others.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It hasn’t been smooth. The hardest thing to adjust your mind to is handling constant rejection. Luckily I had built up a thick skin from six years as an actor before starting as a songwriter, but the rejection is relentlessly. Band politics were also challenging, being the lead singer, songwriter and manager of all my bands I just got tired of managing ppl. Becoming Beks, having freedom and 100% authority of my own career has allowed me to funnel all my energy into my music.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a songwriter and performer primarily but I also use fashion, film and photography to express myself. During COVID, I used my organizational skills (tour manager excel enthusiast) to produce a TV series called Loud n Queer TV. It was a 1hr show, three seasons, I conceptualized bringing queer performers, drag queens and kings and hip hop, pop and rock bands together in one variety show. If it’s show business, I wanna be in it. I love to entertain and create.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Wow, well my current Beks fans might not know that during a live show in 2018 opening for Jack River, I shaved my head on stage. Umm, oh another one is I starred in an independent Australian horror film called ‘There’s something in The Pilliga’ playing Tammy the local slut that got eaten by a giant yowie.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hi_im_beks/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/hi.im.beks/
- Youtube: https://youtu.be/6_BDeAFT_SU
Image Credits
Georgia Wallace Richard Smith
